Epilogue - An Alternate Ending to The Blood of Olympus
by Abby Squared
Summary: Battle...there was a battle...what happened...? Percy wakes up in a strange place, with fuzzy memories of what happened, where everyone is...something feels very off. "The Heroes of Olympus" series concludes in a shocking, gripping, unbelievable finale. One-shot, completed.


_**(All Rights to Rick Riordan for original PJO references and characters.)**_

_**Epilogue**_

_**~/~**_

_**I Have the Longest Dream In the History of Mankind **_

It happened slowly, then all at once. I became aware of a steady beeping sound, realizing it had been there for a while. I lay listening to the sound for a minute, too exhausted to move. Then the memories came back.

"Annabeth!" I sat up fast, my eyes fluttering open. Cords pulled at my arms, and my head throbbed. I squinted against the fluorescent lights, trying to ignore the blinding pain, and called her name again. Images of Gaea flashed across my mind, and I started to panic. The door burst open and a petite lady dressed head to toe in white scampered in.

Everything was white. Why was it white?

The lady began speaking, high-pitched and southern. My brain didn't want to cooperate and her words were a jumble of sounds. How did I know she was southern? Yeah, I have no clue.

Finally, "—such a long time."

I tried my voice again, "Where's Annabeth?"

The lady kind of looked at me funny, "Anna-who?"

"Anna-beth! My—my…"

"Oh honey child, you've been in a coma! Of course you're confused!"

"A…a coma?"

The nurse smiled that sickly sweet smile again, "You just need some rest." The door snapped shut behind her before I knew she was gone.

"Percy?" I heard a voice call from the hall. Mom. Finally, someone who can explain what's going on.

She bolted into the room, and then stopped abruptly, mouth agape. Tears formed in the corners of her eyes. She pressed a hand to her lips. "Oh, Percy."

"Mom! What happened? Where am I? Where's Annabeth? And—"

Grover pranced in, his eyes widening when he saw me. "Percy man! You're awake!"

I blinked. There was something strange about him, something that didn't seem right. He was oddly clean-shaven, and looked younger than I remembered, but that wasn't it.

"What happened to you?" I said.

"Percy," Mom said. "I can explain everything. Do you remember when you and I drove to Montauk after you came back from Yancy?"

"Yeah, and then Grover showed up without his pants, and we drove to camp chased by the Minotaur. But that was years ago!"

"Honey," She looked at me, concerned. "We never arrived at Montauk. Grover never lost his pants and we never faced any Minotaur."

Grover snickered. Mom shot him a sharp glance and he reddened, turning away quickly.

"You hit your head really hard, Percy. You scared us to death and went into a coma. You've been in a coma for a year now. This might be hard to understand, Percy, but you're thirteen now."

"What? No—I'm seventeen, remember? And this story doesn't add up! If I've been in a coma, then how do you explain my years at camp? Where is everyone? Where's Annabeth? And Gaea. Was she destroyed?"

"Percy!" Grover shouted. "You're talking nonsense! What's with all these names and camp and stuff? You were probably dreaming! You've had long enough to do it."

Dreaming? No. Camp Half-Blood is not a dream. Neither is Annabeth. This has to be one of Gaea's tricks; a manipulation of the mist.

"Okay, you got me. Very funny. Just, tell me what happened."

"Percy…" My mom glanced at Grover, "I just did."

"Come on, guys. I'm serious."

"So are we," Grover said.

I grunted in frustration, "Cut it out! This isn't funny at all! Just tell me where Annabeth is!"

"Percy," My mom laid her hand on my arm, she spoke calmly like to a young child, "We don't know any Annabeth and neither do you."

I sighed at her and turned to Grover, "Remember Annabeth? My girlfriend? You knew her way before we met at Yancy. Remember Thalia and Luke?"

Grover regarded me with a blank expression before turning to my mom, "Ms. Jackson…" She waved him off and continued to stare concernedly at me.

I looked away from her and noticed the window for the first time. I gazed at the New York skyline for a while before sitting upright again.

"Why are we in New York?"

My mom brightened, "We live here Percy. Our apartment is just a couple of blocks away from here." She smiled.

"I know that," I was really exasperated now, "I _mean_, how did I get halfway across the world without Gaea killing me?"

"Percy, no one is trying to kill you."

Okay, maybe I shouldn't have but I confess, I started laughing like a maniac. No one trying to kill me? Try saying that to Kronos, or Gaea! No one trying to kill me—ha. Jokes. That's what this was. One big, fat joke. My life was built around somebody trying to kill me, trying to harm those I love, making me suffer. This was _so _not cool.

"Percy, maybe you should calm down," Mom began.

"NO! STOP IT!" I screamed. Now I was angry. I was furious. Either they were lying to my face or Gaea was messing with me. I wanted to sob. So undignified. For all I knew, that could be just what Gaea wanted. Weaken me spiritually and then attack. So instead, I ripped the stupid cords from my arms and jumped out of the hospital bed.

"Percy!" Grover screamed. "What are you doing? Just calm down, you're scaring me!"

For the first time, I noticed the fear in both of their eyes. And I was the cause. Great. This was just fantastic.

"Percy," Mom said, her voice calm and steady. "You've been in a coma for a really long time. You've been dreaming. I don't know any Annabeth or camp or whatever it is you're talking about. I need you to trust us! I'm so sorry. Can you just relax? We'll take you home, help you readjust. Please, Percy."

I breathed in deeply. Okay, I'll play along. "What about Gabe?"

Her expression softened. "We divorced two months after the accident."

I sighed in relief.

"And Chir—Mr. Brunner? What happened to him? And—" I laughed, I found it! "How do you explain the incident with Mrs. Dodds?"

"You're still going on about her?" Grover asked, incredulous. "That math teacher you made up?"

"Made up?"

"Yeah, you kept going on about some Mrs. Dodds, pretending you couldn't remember Mrs. Kerr."

"But you were lying! I could tell every time I brought her up!"

Grover laughed sheepishly, "Perce, that was all my joke. To get you to really believe you saw her."

No. This is not happening. This is so wrong. Yet why did it all add up? "But, she was a monster...a fury!"

"Dude, you remember it all wrong! Mrs. Kerr was with us from the beginning! Maybe you're schizophrenic, or something."

"What about the Fates? The old ladies we saw at the fruit stand?"

Blank expression.

"On the bus home!"

"Oh! Yeah. Same joke...I'm sorry, I know it was cruel. Really freaked you out, though."

I turned back to the window, blotting out my thoughts and focusing on my surroundings, looking for any clue that would tell me it was all fake. Landmarks that were in the wrong place. Inconsistencies. Anything!

I scanned the room. There had to be a sign this was fake somewhere. My eyes stopped at a mirror, and I sucked in my breath. I was a wimp! My arms were skinny and I had a half-dead look about me. I had lost, like, a foot in height. I reminded myself of...seventh grade. But technically, if this psycho story was true, that was about right.

I guess I kind of pulled a Narssisus just then because my Mom tentatively said my name again.

"Percy, are you okay?"

I touched my face. "Not at all. Not like this. Not without _her_." I winced as my voice cracked. Darn. I thought puberty was far behind me.

I realized how insane I must have looked; a thirteen year old kid staring at himself in a mirror feeling heartbroken for a girl who didn't exist outside of his dreams.

You know when you're all pumped up on adrenaline and crash? That's what it felt like. I was exhausted, I couldn't stand up for one more moment.

I nearly collapsed onto the hospital bed again. All I could think of was Annabeth; her blond hair, her stormy gray eyes...

Honestly, if I could dream up someone as amazing as that, either I was really desperate or really ingenious.

"Percy, why don't you get some rest?" Mom said. I noticed that Grover had been inching towards the door. If I were in his position, I'd be backing off too.

"I'm going to talk to the nurse about having you released. I'll be right back, okay?"

My mom turned and left the hospital room. As Grover followed her out, I realized why he looked so strange. He was wearing shorts.

I leaned back, wincing when I felt something beneath me. I reached to the small of my back, and there was a remote. I fiddled with it, and put it down on the bedside table. I ran my hands through my hair. I didn't want this. Not a normal life. I wanted to be with Annabeth, even if it meant our blood being spilled and Gaea rising. Because then we could be together for eternity in Elysium. Me. Her. Forever.

The tears started flowing, and I squeezed my eyes shut. I focused on breathing. Why? Why did everything turn against me to make me suffer? Every shot I've ever had at "a happy ending" backfired. And now, either I was going crazy, I had died and this was some messed up afterlife, or reality was that the last five years of my life were a dream. But how? How could it have been?

Grover peeked his head in, and said, "Hey Perce. The nurses are clearing you. Go ahead and get dressed."

I wiped away my tears. "Yeah. Sure, great. One minute."

Grover nodded awkwardly and closed the door. To him, I was a complete stranger. A classmate who had been out cold for a year. And to me, he was my satyr who went with me and Annabeth on amazing adventures, a trio saving the world together.

Noticing the bundle of clothes on the bedside table, I grabbed them and dressed. Blue jeans, converse, and an orange t-shirt. My heart skipped a beat. Was this t-shirt from camp?

I held it up, and my hope deflated. It was a plain orange t-shirt, no markings or anything on it. Great.

I pulled it over my head and knelt to tie the shoes. What would my life be like now? Would I live a normal life? Would I eventually forget camp and my other life?

I sat back on the bed and picked up the remote. Might as well catch up on the news. Just what I need, to be even more depressed.

As expected, it was all depressing news presented by smiling newscasters. How ironic. I was about to turn off the screen, when it changed. Commercial break?

My eyes widened. _What?_

That's Annabeth. And Luke. And Thalia. They were huddled together in some alley way. On television.

I reached out, touching the screen with my hand. Stroking young Annabeth's face. She had to be seven, if not younger. But she was still beautiful, the crown of golden curls framing her sweet face and her striking gray eyes.

The TV screen returned to the news broadcast. I stifled a scream. No! I need Annabeth! Unless I was hallucinating, she was real, and she was out there. I had to  
find her.

"Percy," I heard my mom call. "Almost ready to go, sweetheart?"

"Yeah," I said.

I would find her. Annabeth was alive. Camp was real. I would get back. I would get my life—my real life—back. I don't know how. Maybe I was insane. But I figured that out ages ago.

I followed my mom and Grover out of the hospital. I had a new life ahead of me, and perhaps the most terrifying, most difficult quest of all. But it would all be worth it.

I slipped my hands into my pocket as we stepped outside. Fresh air filled my nostrils. I felt like I was breathing for the first time.

It took me a moment to realize that in my pocket, there was a pen.


End file.
